


The Best Kind of People

by Perfect_Insanity



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Daryl Dixon fluff - Freeform, F/M, Fluff, daryl dixon - Freeform, walking dead - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-25
Updated: 2018-06-25
Packaged: 2019-05-28 07:25:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15043739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perfect_Insanity/pseuds/Perfect_Insanity
Summary: During a hunting trip, Daryl runs into a woman. Aiming his crossbow at her, he's surprised to see her raise her own bow and arrow at him.





	The Best Kind of People

**Author's Note:**

> Imagine coming face to face with Daryl while he's out hunting; or rather arrow to arrow as he has a crossbow and you have a vertical bow.

Being the best hunter in your group was flattering but also the biggest annoyance at the same time because they always sent you for food every single time. And sometimes, you were exhausted, sometimes sick, and you’d be gone for days at a time on certain occasions. You decided when you left for the millionth time that you were going to teach the others how to hunt so it wasn’t all on you anymore.

You’d managed to snag a few dozen small rodents but you wanted to stay out a little longer on the off chance you could find something bigger like a deer. But it seemed today wouldn’t be your lucky day.

It would be getting dark soon but you still decided to take another break, sitting amongst the leaves with your bow leaning against the tree beside you. You were drinking the rest of your water, the cool liquid soothing your dry throat. You couldn’t wait to get back to your group so you could get some much needed rest. It would be best to get back to camp as you were running out of arrows. You’d wasted a few earlier when you had to kill a few dead ones and then run without grabbing them. The cool thing about having a bow and arrow was that you didn’t have to worry about finding ammo, just the proper supplies to make your own. And while that could be challenging, it was definitely easier than hoping to come across some bullets. But you weren’t unrealistic about it. Guns were still necessary and you still had one handy in case you needed it. If your bad luck continued, you’d eventually need the gun.

You leaned your head back, closing your eyes and wiping the sweat from your brow. The sun was particularly brutal today, beating down on you all day long with no relief. Not even this shade under a tree could shield you from its bright light. You were drenched in sweat at this point, shuddering at a few drops rolling down your back. That was your cue to get back on your feet and head back to camp with what little food you could find. It still wasn’t a total loss. You had enough small rodents to last you and your group at least a week and that was plenty of time to teach a few people how to hunt. You’d still have to go with them so they weren’t being tossed into the deep end but at least it wouldn’t be all on your shoulders anymore. 

As you got back up on your feet and put your water bottle back into your backpack, footsteps approached you. They were slow, methodical. It definitely wasn’t a dead one but that didn’t take the threat away. People weren’t so great even when the world ended. All the good ones died out a long time ago and that only left the assholes, you’d learned that rather quickly. There were even members of your own group that you didn’t trust that much.

You gripped your bow but didn’t move right away, licking your lips. The person had stopped walking but you heard the jingling of the zippers on their backpack. Taking a deep breath, you whipped your body around, pointing your bow at the mystery person. It turned out you weren’t the only one with skill in archery.

The person standing a few feet away from you was a man pointing a crossbow at you. He was slightly taller than average height but he wasn’t exactly towering over you. A sleeveless shirt revealed bulging muscles and broad shoulders, his skin tanned from hours upon hours of exposure to the sun. His hair was short, medium brown and drenched in sweat, sticking to his forehead. He was focused, barely blinking as he stared you down.

“I don’t want any trouble,” you finally spoke up, “Not gonna hurt you as long as you don’t try anything. Just wanna take this back to my group.”

The man gave you a nod, “Same here. That all you got?”

His lip tugged a bit in a smirk, looking at the dead rodents attached to your hip. You snarled under your breath, “So, it wasn’t a great day. What the fuck is it to you?”

“How many people in your group?” he inquired.

“Not many,” you replied, “Six, including me. Why?”

Normally, you wouldn’t have allowed conversation to last this long and you certainly wouldn’t have given away that much information but something about this man was trustworthy. The man lowered his crossbow with a heavy sigh, “No need to waste their time with shit like that. Was takin’ a deer back to my camp.”

“And you’re willing to just bring back six other people to share the deer with?” you said, “What’s your game?”

“Game?” he said, “What game? Tryin’ to be charitable here. Don’t seem like much of a threat. Could be useful too. Power in numbers, ya know?”

“I guess,” you mumbled, “I could…help take your deer back to your camp, get a feel for it and then decide if I wanna bring my group there. It’d be nice to have the option of having seconds…for once.”

“Wouldn’t it?” Daryl said. He grabbed the strap on his crossbow and threw it over his shoulder, his crossbow rested on his back, “You gonna stand there ready to shoot me with your bow or are you gonna come help me like you said you would?”

“I don’t even know your name,” you said.

“Daryl,” he said, “What about you? Do I get to know your name or what?”

You slowly lowered your bow as you followed him through the woods towards the deer he claimed to have caught. You still weren’t entirely sure about the guy now that he was leading you even farther from your camp. But hey, if he tried anything, you could take care of yourself.

“Y/N,” you replied. You were relieved to see there actually was a deer to be taken back to Daryl’s camp and you trusted him enough to lower your bow completely, “Glad there was really a deer.”

“What do you mean?” Daryl said.

“Was afraid I’d have to defend myself against you,” you said, “Happy to see that you’re genuine. Kinda rare these days.”

Daryl grabbed the deer’s front legs while you took the back legs. Together, you hoisted the corpse up and Daryl started walking towards camp, “Was thinkin’ the same thing about you. You said you had five other people in your group?”

“Yes.”

“You look like a damn mess,” Daryl said, “Are you the only one pulling your weight?”

“I’m the only one skilled enough to hunt,” you replied, “But it balances out. I don’t do the cooking or cleaning since I’m out here so much. Still, it’d be nice to have some help with hunting. I am a ‘damn mess’ as you so gracefully put it.”

“Probably should bring your group to our camp,” Daryl said, “Teach ‘em how to divide some work.”

You walked with the deer corpse for a few more minutes until you reached a clearing. It was a massive farm and there was a small group sitting around a campfire outside an RV. They were all smiling and laughing and they all had kind eyes. All except for one bald guy but he couldn’t have been much different from certain members of your group. 

Seeing this new group made you feel a lot better about bringing your own people here. Perhaps there were still good people left in the world. Even if these were the last good people left in the world, it was enough to restore your faith in humanity. Daryl could’ve easily shot you while your back was turned and taken your supplies back to his camp without a second thought but he didn’t. He took a chance on a stranger who actually did need the help. Daryl Dixon and his group were the kind of people that the world needed to protect at all costs. Daryl was the kind of person you wanted to hang onto as long as you could.


End file.
